West Nile Virus On Rise. Deaths. States. CDC Data.

West Nile virus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

West Nile Virus
Virus classification
Group:	Group IV ((+)ssRNA)
Family:	Flaviviridae
Genus:	Flavivirus
Species:	West Nile virus

West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne zoonotic arbovirus belonging to the genus Flavivirus in the family Flaviviridae. This flavivirus is found in temperate and tropical regions of the world. It was first identified in the West Nile subregion in the East African nation of Uganda in 1937. Prior to the mid 1990s, WNV disease occurred only sporadically and was considered a minor risk for humans, until an outbreak in Algeria in 1994, with cases of WNV-caused encephalitis, and the first large outbreak in Romania in 1996, with a high number of cases with neuroinvasive disease. WNV has now spread globally, with the first case in the Western Hemisphere being identified in New York City in 1999;^[1] over the next 5 years, the virus spread across the continental United States, north into Canada, and southward into the Caribbean Islands and Latin America. WNV also spread to Europe, beyond the Mediterranean Basin [a new strain of the virus was recently (2012) identified in Italy]. WNV is now considered to be an endemic pathogen in Africa, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Europe and in the United States, which in 2012 has experienced one of its worst epidemics.

The main mode of WNV transmission is via various species of mosquitoes which are the prime vector, with birds being the most commonly infected animal and serving as the prime reservoir host - especially passerines which are of the largest order (Passeriformes) of birds. WNV has been found in various species of ticks, but current research suggests they are not important vectors of the virus. WNV also infects various mammal species, including humans, and has been identified in reptilian species, including alligators and crocodiles, and also in amphibians. Not all animal species which are susceptible to WNV infection – humans included, and not all bird species develop sufficient viral levels to transmit the disease to uninfected mosquitoes, and are thus not considered major factors in WNV transmission.^[2][3]

Approximately 80% of West Nile virus infections in humans are subclinical, which cause no symptoms.^[4] In the cases where symptoms do occur – termed West Nile fever in cases without neurological disease – the time from infection to the appearance of symptoms (incubation period) is typically between 2 and 15 days. Symptoms may include fever, headaches, fatigue, muscle pain or aches, malaise, nausea, anorexia, vomiting, myalgias and rash. Less than 1% of the cases are severe and result in neurological disease when the central nervous system is affected. People of advanced age, the very young, or those with immunosuppression, either medically induced, such as those taking immunosupressive drugs, or due to a pre-existing medical condition such as HIV infection, are most susceptible. The specific neurological diseases which may occur are West Nile encephalitis, which causes inflammation of the brain, West Nile meningitis, which causes inflammation of the meninges which are the protective membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord, West Nile meningoencephalitis, which causes inflammation of the brain and also the meninges surrounding it, and West Nile poliomyelitis - spinal cord inflammation which results in a syndrome similar to polio, which may cause acute flaccid paralysis.

Currently, no vaccine against WNV infection is available. The best method to reduce the rates of WNV infection is mosquito control on the part of municipalities, businesses and individual citizens to reduce breeding populations of mosquitoes in public, commercial and private areas via various means including eliminating standing pools of water where mosquitoes breed, such as in old tires, buckets, disused swimming pools, etc. On an individual basis, the use of personal protective measures to avoid being bitten by an infected mosquito, via the use of mosquito repellent, window screens, avoiding areas where mosquitoes are more prone to congregate, such as near marshes, areas with heavy vegetation etc., and being more vigilant from dusk to dawn when mosquitoes are most active offers the best defense. In the event of being bitten by an infected mosquito, familiarity of the symptoms of WNV on the part of laypersons, physicians and allied health professionals affords the best chance of receiving timely medical treatment which may aid in reducing associated possible complications and also appropriate palliative care.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Nile_virus

2012 West Nile virus update: October 2

As of October 2, 2012, 48 states have reported West Nile virus infections in people, birds, or mosquitoes. A total of 3,969 cases of West Nile virus disease in people, including 163 deaths, have been reported to CDC. Of these, 2,010 (51%) were classified as neuroinvasive disease (such as meningitis or encephalitis) and 1,959 (49%) were classified as non-neuroinvasive disease.

The 3,969 cases reported thus far in 2012 is the highest number of West Nile virus disease cases reported to CDC through the first week in October since 2003. Almost 70 percent of the cases have been reported from eight states (Texas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Dakota, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Illinois) and a third of all cases have been reported from Texas.

West Nile Virus (WNV) Human Infections Reported to ArboNET, by
State, United States, 2012 (as of October 2, 2012)

Human Disease Cases Reported To CDC
State	Neuroinvasive Disease Cases	Non–Neuroinvasive Disease Cases	Total Cases*	Deaths	Presumptive Viremic Blood Donors†
Totals	2,010	1,959	3,969	163	508
Alabama	24	7	31	1	0
Arizona	40	27	67	1	23
Arkansas	37	14	51	6	4
California	121	95	216	10	41
Colorado	50	56	106	3	0
Connecticut	8	8	16	0	1
Delaware	1	5	6	1	0
District Of Columbia	2	0	2	1	0
Florida	35	13	48	2	4
Georgia	27	18	45	4	11
Idaho	3	8	11	0	2
Illinois	108	45	153	5	16
Indiana	12	50	62	6	14
Iowa	6	13	19	0	6
Kansas	15	17	32	1	0
Kentucky	4	2	6	0	3
Louisiana	107	106	213	11	31
Maryland	18	17	35	3	12
Massachusetts	15	5	20	1	0
Michigan	127	51	178	10	36
Minnesota	32	34	66	1	31
Mississippi	88	114	202	5	20
Missouri	10	4	14	1	8
Montana	0	5	5	0	0
Nebraska	17	68	85	1	22
Nevada	5	1	6	1	1
New Hampshire	1	0	1	0	0
New Jersey	16	19	35	2	4
New Mexico	19	17	36	1	6
New York	45	28	73	4	12
North Carolina	6	0	6	2	2
North Dakota	32	45	77	0	17
Ohio	60	37	97	4	14
Oklahoma	90	72	162	9	35
Oregon	0	3	3	0	0
Pennsylvania	15	7	22	1	4
Rhode Island	2	2	4	0	0
South Carolina	16	8	24	3	11
South Dakota	58	137	195	3	42
Tennessee	16	10	26	0	1
Texas	674	764	1438	54	58
Utah	1	2	3	0	0
Vermont	1	0	1	0	0
Virginia	11	8	19	2	2
Washington	3	1	4	0	0
West Virginia	3	0	3	0	0
Wisconsin	26	12	38	3	13
Wyoming	3	4	7	0	1

* Includes confirmed and probable cases.
†Of the 508 presumptive viremic blood donors, 76 (15%) developed clinical illness and are also included as "Human disease cases reported to CDC".

West Nile virus (WNV) activity reported to ArboNET, by state, United States, 2012 (as of October 2, 2012)

Footnote: The map displays white areas that represent no WNV activity reported, light green areas that represent any WNV activity* , dark green circles that represent disease cases, and dark green triangles that represent presumptive viremic blood donors.

* Includes WNV human disease cases, presumptive viremic blood donors, veterinary disease cases and infections in mosquitoes, birds, and sentinel animals.
† Presumptive viremic blood donors have a positive screening test which has not necessarily been confirmed.

Map shows the distribution of WNV activity* (shaded in light green), human infections (dark green circles), and presumptive viremic blood donors (dark green triangles) occurring during 2012 by state. If West Nile virus infection is reported from any area of a state, that entire state is shaded.

Data table:

Non-human West Nile virus infections have been reported to CDC ArboNET from the following states:

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Four thousand four hundred and one human West Nile virus infections have been reported to CDC ArboNET from Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

USGS: CDC Arbonet Maps provided by USGS

For information on WNV activity in Canada please see:http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/wnv-vwn/index.html

What Is West Nile Virus? West Nile virus (WNV) is a potentially serious illness. Experts believe WNV is established as a seasonal epidemic in North America that flares up in the summer and continues into the fall. This fact sheet contains important information that can help you recognize and prevent West Nile virus. What Can I Do to Prevent WNV? New! Prevention measures consist of community-based mosquito control programs that are able to reduce vector populations, personal protection measures to reduce the likelihood of being bitten by infected mosquitoes, and the underlying surveillance programs that characterize spatial/temporal patterns in risk that allow health and vector control agencies to target their interventions and resources. The easiest and best way to avoid WNV is to prevent mosquito bites. When you are outdoors, use insect repellent containing an EPA-registered active ingredient. Follow the directions on the package. Many mosquitoes are most active at dusk and dawn. Be sure to use insect repellent and wear long sleeves and pants at these times or consider staying indoors during these hours. Make sure you have good screens on your windows and doors to keep mosquitoes out. Get rid of mosquito breeding sites by emptying standing water from flower pots, buckets and barrels. Change the water in pet dishes and replace the water in bird baths weekly. Drill holes in tire swings so water drains out. Keep children's wading pools empty and on their sides when they aren't being used. Back to the top What Are the Symptoms of WNV? Serious Symptoms in a Few People. About one in 150 people infected with WNV will develop severe illness. The severe symptoms can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks, and neurological effects may be permanent. Milder Symptoms in Some People. Up to 20 percent of the people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for as short as a few days, though even healthy people have become sick for several weeks. No Symptoms in Most People. Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all. Back to the top How Does West Nile Virus Spread? Infected Mosquitoes. Most often, WNV is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on infected birds. Infected mosquitoes can then spread WNV to humans and other animals when they bite. Transfusions, Transplants, and Mother-to-Child. In a very small number of cases, WNV also has been spread through blood transfusions, organ transplants, breastfeeding and even during pregnancy from mother to baby. Not through touching. WNV is not spread through casual contact such as touching or kissing a person with the virus. Back to the top How Soon Do Infected People Get Sick? People typically develop symptoms between 3 and 14 days after they are bitten by the infected mosquito. Back to the top How Is WNV Infection Treated? There is no specific treatment for WNV infection. In cases with milder symptoms, people experience symptoms such as fever and aches that pass on their own, although even healthy people have become sick for several weeks. In more severe cases, people usually need to go to the hospital where they can receive supportive treatment including intravenous fluids, help with breathing and nursing care. Back to the top What Should I Do if I Think I Have WNV? Milder WNV illness improves on its own, and people do not necessarily need to seek medical attention for this infection though they may choose to do so. If you develop symptoms of severe WNV illness, such as unusually severe headaches or confusion, seek medical attention immediately. Severe WNV illness usually requires hospitalization. Pregnant women and nursing mothers are encouraged to talk to their doctor if they develop symptoms that could be WNV. Back to the top What Is the Risk of Getting Sick from WNV? People over 50 at higher risk to get severe illness.People over the age of 50 are more likely to develop serious symptoms of WNV if they do get sick and should take special care to avoid mosquito bites. Being outside means you're at risk. The more time you're outdoors, the more time you could be bitten by an infected mosquito. Pay attention to avoiding mosquito bites if you spend a lot of time outside, either working or playing. Risk through medical procedures is very low. All donated blood is checked for WNV before being used. The risk of getting WNV through blood transfusions and organ transplants is very small, and should not prevent people who need surgery from having it. If you have concerns, talk to your doctor. Back to the top Pregnancy and nursing do not increase risk of becoming infected with WNV. The risk that WNV may present to a fetus or an infant infected through breastmilk is still being evaluated. Talk with your care provider if you have concerns. Back to the top What Is the CDC Doing About WNV? CDC is working with state and local health departments and other government agencies, as well as private industry, to prepare for and prevent new cases of WNV. Some things CDC is doing include: Manage and maintain ArboNET, a nation-wide electronic surveillance system where states share information about WNV and other arboviral diseases Support states develop and carry out improved mosquito prevention and control programs Developing better, faster tests to detect and diagnose WNV Prepare updated prevention and surveillance information for the media, the public, and health professionals Working with partners on the development of vaccines Back to the top What Else Should I Know? If you find a dead bird: Don't handle the body with your bare hands. Contact your local health department for instructions on reporting and disposing of the body. They may tell you to dispose of the bird after they log your report. For more information Call 1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636), Monday - Friday, 8am-8pm ET, Closed Holidays Email cdcinfo@cdc.gov. (For TTY, call 1-888-232-6348.)

Super Bug Outbreak Alert! 8-19-2011

Scientists Search for Kryptonite to Defeat Drug-Resistant Super Bugs

Many Believe that a Supervirus will be the Doom of Mankind

This theory has been gaining more popularity lately, as many new drug-resistant superbugs have been not only been killing people, but birds, fish and even pigs across the globe.

With birds falling from the sky while people are dying in modern hospitals from mysterious staff infections, its no wonder that people's imaginations are running amok. While religious doomsday sayers preach about biblical plagues many heathen conspiracy theorists believe the diseases were manufactured in government labs to implement some sort of population reduction.

Meanwhile, public health officials are worried about the rising number of new drug resistant superbugs, as well as of the overuse of antibiotics, hand sanitizers and home disinfectants. The overuse of atibiotic drugs and cleaners could make these bacteria resistant to them, so that they would no longer work for even curing minor viral infections, including flu, coughs, colds and sore throats.  

Fortunately, a team of Canadian scientists discovered that specific mixtures of antimicrobial agents presented in lipid (fatty) mixtures can significantly boost the effectiveness of those agents to kill the resistant bacteria.

Thank God these "Super bugs," which can cause wide-spread disease and may be resistant to most, if not all, conventional antibiotics, still have their weaknesses.

According to Richard Epand, Ph.D. from the Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Science at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, a researcher involved in the study, "This study may contribute to overcoming the lethal effects of drug resistant bacteria that is becoming an increasing clinical problem, particularly in hospitals."

Their discovery came when Epand and colleagues conducted experiments using groups of mice infected with lethal doses of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli (E. coli). The rresearchers then treated the mice with conventional drug combinations or drug combinations encapsulated in lipid mixtures. They found that certain lipid mixtures caused the drugs to act together in a synergistic manner. In this mano, the drugs were far more effective in increasing the survival rate of the lab rats, as they overcame the cellular mechanisms used by these bacteria to defeat therapeutic agents.

This study also demonstrated a new use of the premier family of antimicrobial agents called oligo-acyl-lysyls, which have the potential to be combined with other drugs to yield a platform for other specific applications.

Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal said, "as we've seen in the recent E. coli outbreak in Germany, bacteria can mutate to become super bugs that resist antibiotics. Thanks to this new, lipid-based antibiotic therapy, multidrug-resistant bacteria may begin to look more like Jimmy Olsen and a lot less like Superman."...

What do you think? Do you think science will outsmart bacteria and viruses? Do you believe we will someday conquer disease? Maybe enable people to live longer? Please leave your comment bellow!

Written By: Tom Retterbush

http://www.conspiracywatch.net/2011/07/scientists-search-for-kryptonite-to.html

 

Superbug frightening for frail patients in Los Angeles, Utah and beyond

Published: Monday, March 28, 2011 12:25 p.m. MDT

By Lois M. Collins, Deseret News

 

A "superbug" that outsmarts multiple types of antibiotics in the medical arsenal has infected more than 350 patients in Los Angeles-area facilities. And that has health officials nationwide worried. A study of the issue by the LA. County Department of Public Health will be presented in Dallas next week at the annual meeting of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.
ABC News reported this weekend that carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae, or CRKP, had been seen hundreds of times there between June and December of 2010. Most of the patients were elderly. The report quoted study author Dr. Dawn Terashita, medical epidemiologist, as saying most of the patients were elderly, they were often on ventilators and they are apt to have been staying at a facility for a long time.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began tracking CRKP across the country in 2009. Officials there say it is harder to treat than MRSA, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. It has also been confirmed in most of the states, including Utah, according to a map made by the CDC.

The CDC describes Klebsiella as a type of gram-negative bacteria that normally is found living harmlessly in human intestines. It can cause a variety of infections, most of them associated with healthcare settings, including pneumonia, bloodstream infections, wound or surgery-site infections and meningitis. That's determined by how it enters a patient, so infection gained through respiration becomes pneumonia, while that in a wound becomes a bloodstream infection, for example.

So-called "superbugs" occur when bacteria mutate to the point that antibiotics previously effective against them no longer are. "Superbug" and "multiresistant" are sometimes used interchangeably.

The ABC report emphasizes that healthy people are not endangered by the bacteria, but said it can be lethal to those who are ill or frail....
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700122278/Superbug-frightening-for-frail-patients-in-Los-Angeles-Utah-and-beyond.html

Superbug outbreak declared at Kingston hospital

Aug 17, 2011 – 9:01 AM ET

KINGSTON, Ont. — An Ontario hospital has declared a facility-wide outbreak of the drug-resistant superbug C. difficile, after 12 new cases were reported in the last 30 days.

The Kingston General Hospital said in a statement that staff are working to contain the outbreak and stop further spread of the hospital-acquired infection.

The hospital is urging people not to come to the hospital if they are feeling unwell, and advising visitors to be diligent in washing their hands to prevent spreading the disease.

C. difficile spreads through contact with fecal matter and is especially difficult for the elderly and those with existing health conditions to handle. Symptoms include diarrhea, loss of appetite, nausea and abdominal pain.

Ontario has struggled to contain the superbug, which is responsible for at least 24 deaths since May.

Hospitals in the Niagara area, Guelph and Orangeville have all grappled with outbreaks.
http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/08/17/superbug-outbreak-declared-at-kingston-hospital/

Superbug alert after hospital patient dies

Mary Ann Benitez
Wednesday, August 17, 2011


Infection control measures were rushed in at a ward in Caritas Medical Centre after an elderly man with a hospital-acquired superbug infection died. 

Two other patients were found to be carriers of the superbug and were in fair condition in isolation last night.

The Kowloon hospital said a 74-year-old man with pneumonia and acute renal failure was admitted to a 50-bed medical ward at the hospital in Sham Shui Po on July 29.

The patient was put on a catheter, but there was no information on other treatment he received.

He was confirmed to be suffering from Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) urinary tract infection on Sunday.

He died of renal failure yesterday morning.

The case is being investigated by the Hospital Authority and the Centre for Health Protection.

The hospital is testing patients who stayed in the same ward with the man over the same period and have found two male patients aged 74 and 76 to be VRE carriers after rectal swabs.

Both men were earlier admitted to hospital for pneumonia.

"This is contact precaution," a hospital spokeswoman said. "They have no infection signs, just carriers."
Both patients are being monitored and are in fair condition in isolation.

The hospital has stepped up handwashing and alerted staff to keep to a high standard of disease control and ensure proper use of antibiotics, including Vancomycin, and management of VRE carriers.

Tests are pending on other patients who may have been infected, the spokeswoman said, adding that no members of hospital staff are being tested for the superbug infection.

A specialist in infectious diseases, Lo Wing-lok, said he is not surprised with the cluster of superbug infections.
This is because Caritas serves "a very aged area and there are so many elderly patients who are chronically ill and staying in hospital for a long time."

VRE is an opportunistic bacteria found in the intestines which usually preys on the elderly and patients with low levels of immunity.

Lo said a urinary catheter usually serves as "a highway for the bacteria to move from the bowels to the urinary tract."

Elderly men "have big prostate glands and do not pass water as well as young people" so are prone to urinary tract infection when they use catheters for too long.

"I understand how such outbreaks can happen where elderly patients are being admitted and stay for a long time, where it is usually crowded and staff are stretched to the limit. We can only blame the system," he said.
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=114244&sid=33415042&con_type=1  

New superbug is on the rise in our hospitals

WORRY: More patients hit by CRE

By Clodagh Sheehy

Thursday August 18 2011

Four new cases of a hospital superbug, which can cause dangerous infections in vulnerable patients, have been detected here in the past month.

The bug, which is resistant to some antibiotics, can hit the kidneys, wounds and blood of patients.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) is to review all critical care units to assess the prevalence of the infection.

The bug CRE (Carbapenem Resistant Enterobacteriaceae) lives in the bowel and five cases were detected in Irish hospitals earlier this year.

The independent European journal Eurosurveillance has now confirmed that "as of July 20, 2011 an additional four cases" of the superbug had been found.

The nine cases are the first reported cases of this strain of CRE in Ireland and the HPSC has described the outbreak as "dramatically changing the epidemiology of CRE in Ireland".

CRE cases have been notifiable in Ireland since March but to date there has been no national compulsory screening programme.

Five cases were detected between March and Junein patients who had all undergone complex stomach surgery.

COMPLICATIONS
One patient later died from "complications of a gastro- intestinal haemorrhage not related to infection".

The four new cases were found in St Vincent's hospital in Dublin and the Mid Western Regional hospital in Limerick, St John's Hospital, Ennis General Hospital and Nenagh General Hospital.

None of the patients had been treated at a healthcare facility outside the country in the previous 12 months and so had not picked up the bug abroad.

The superbug was first found in Turkey three years ago and since then outbreaks have been reported in France, Germany and the UK, Argentina, Lebanon, Israel Morocco and Tunisia.

The HPSC has announced plans for a new study to detect how common the bug is in hospital intensive care units in this country.

http://www.herald.ie/news/new-superbug-is-on-the-rise-in-our-hospitals-2851690.html